Chaplain’s
Corner
– August 23, 2011
Rev. Rich
Hines
Jesus Our High Priest and Intercessor
This message is primarily for those who call on the name of
Jesus Christ as their own Lord and Savior from sin, and serve as a Chaplain or
a gospel minister in a jail, prison or a follow-up ministry such as a rescue
mission – in the
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This month I want to help you understand the High Priesthood of the Lord Jesus
Christ. I am blessed as I personally let
my mind dwell on His office and work as my High Priest. I believe you will likewise benefit from this
biblical truth. In turn, I know you will
bless the inmates with these truths as well.
First, I want
to remind you and urge you to teach inmates that the role and ministry of an
Old Testament high priest was two-fold.
He was to offer sacrifices for the sins of the people and he was to
offer up prayers on their behalf.
According to
New Testament teaching, there is no more office of priests as mediators between
God and men. The Old Testament
priesthood has been forever abolished!
In that sense, there is ONLY ONE PRIEST, Jesus Christ. See 1 Timothy 2:5
which says:
“For there is one God and one Mediator
between God and men, the Man Christ
Jesus,”
The idea that
we need to go to a man in the office of priest, who in turn goes to God in our
place, when we want to confess our sin and get forgiveness, is not
biblical. Even in the Old Testament, the
Aaronic or Levitical priests
did not obtain forgiveness for others.
Forgiveness always only came from God.
We go straight to God for forgiveness of sin based on the once and for
all sacrifice of Jesus.
Even in the
Old Testament when someone was convicted in their heart about sin, they had to
confess it to God - from their own heart.
The priest simply offered their sacrifice [which ultimately pointed to
Christ’s once and for all sacrifice] for them. All of Psalm 51, and especially verses
16-17, make that abundantly clear.
In his
confession, David prayed to God:
16 For You
[God] do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You
do not delight in burnt offering.
17 The
sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and CONTRITE [sorry] HEART–
these, O God, You will not despise.
I know I
mentioned Jesus’ High Priesthood very briefly in the May 2011 message, and I
believe I quoted from Hebrews 4:14-15, in the June message, which twice calls
Him High Priest. Now, I want to focus on
the fact of Jesus as the believer’s High Priest and Intercessor.
The word of
God declares that Jesus is a High Priest forever after the order of Melchizedek
[Psalm 110:4; Hebrews 5:6, 6:20, 7:17 and 7:21]. The comparison and connection to Melchizedek
is mainly about two things: a superior Priest and an endless, even eternal
Priest.
You notice
most of the references I just mentioned are from the book of Hebrews. Some Bible teachers even claim the priesthood
of Jesus is the theme of Hebrews. His
priesthood is referred to and taught about in Hebrews chapters 2,3,4,5, 7,8,9, and 10.
The superior
priesthood of Jesus only supports what I believe is the truer theme of the book
– namely, the superiority of Jesus Christ to everything.
Jesus Christ
was made a priest for believers by God the Father, by an oath or promise as
opposed to the Old Testament priests that were merely appointed. He was made an eternal priest rather than a
temporary one like all the priests that descended from Aaron though Levi.
Jesus is the
ONLY Priest that did not personally need forgiveness Himself, because He was
sinless. Jesus also is the ONLY Priest
that can grant forgiveness from God. As
we saw in January, He IS GOD. As God, He
alone satisfied His holy wrath against the sin of any believer.
As for the
sacrifice that the true believer’s High Priest Jesus made for them, Hebrews
teaches it was a better sacrifice
offered to God in a better place
with better results than the
continuously repeated sacrifices in the Old Testament, made by Levitical priests.
Consider, and
then teach your inmates these passages from Hebrews.
Hebrews 5:8-10
8 though He was a Son, yet He [Jesus] learned obedience by the
things which He suffered.
9 And having
been perfected, [here this word “perfected” means He completed the task His
Father gave Him in giving up His life as a sacrifice for sin] He became the
author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him,
10 called by
God as High Priest “according to the
order of Melchizedek,”
A lot of
people have trouble with “Melchizedek” simply because it’s hard to
pronounce. The lesson from the life and
ministry of Melchizedek is not that hard to understand, so you can call him
“Mel” [short for “king”] if you want to when you begin teaching inmates on
this. But do go to Hebrews 7.
Hebrews 7:1-3
1 For this
Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham [in
Genesis 14] returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him,
2 to whom also
Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated “king of
righteousness,” [the meaning of the name Melchizedek] and then also king of
3 without
father, without mother, without genealogy,
Melchizedek
did have human parents, but their names were lost, so he had no genealogy,
which in ancient society would have made it very difficult to become a
king. But God made him a king as well as
a priest.
3 … having
neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God,
remains a priest continually.
In other
words, When God made the man named Melchizedek a priest, a man with no
genealogy, He was pointing to an eternal Priest with an eternally continuing
priesthood, even His Son, Jesus Christ.
Now, go to Hebrews 7:11-12 and 18-19
11Therefore,
if perfection [here the idea of “perfection” focuses on the complete atonement
for sin so that the worshiper can get to God] were through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the
law), what further need was there
that another priest should rise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not
be called according to the order of Aaron?”
12 For the
priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law.
…
18 For on the one hand there is an annulling of
the former commandment because of its weakness and unprofitableness,
19 for THE
LAW [or commandment] MADE NOTHING
PERFECT; on the other hand, there
is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God.
This is
saying, the covenant of the law and the system and ministry of the Levitical priesthood had to change.
Flowing out of the previous chapters, Hebrews 8:1-2 and 6
says:
1 Now this is the main point of the things we
are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the
throne of the Majesty IN THE HEAVENS,
2
a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected,
and not man.
…
6 But now He has obtained a MORE EXCELLENT MINISTRY, inasmuch as He
is also Mediator of a BETTER COVENANT,
which was established on BET6TER
PROMISES.
Hebrews 9:11-12, and 23-28 goes on
to make the point that Christ’s priesthood takes place and happens in a
11 But Christ
came as High Priest of the good
things to come, with the GREATER and MORE PERFECT tabernacle not
made with hands, that is, not of this creation.
12 Not with
the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy
Place once for all, having obtained
eternal redemption.
…
23 Therefore it was necessary that the copies of the things in the heavens
should be purified with these, but the heavenly things themselves with BETTER
SACRIFICES than these.
24 For Christ
has not ENTERED the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but INTO HEAVEN ITSELF, now to appear in
the presence of God for us;
25 not that He
should offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the
26 He then
would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now, once
at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of
Himself.
27 And as it
is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment,
28 so Christ
was offered once (once and for all) to bear the sins of many.
The sacrifice
that the true believers’ High Priest Jesus, made for them completed everything - required to save them
eternally. It was a BETTER SACRIFICE,
offered to God the Father –
As our Great
High Priest, Jesus is also the believer’s
INTERCESSOR, He constantly makes intercession for Christians.
“Intercessor”
means someone who tries to restore friendly relations between two who are
separated by differences -
Hebrews 7:20-28 is a great passage on this fact.
20 And
inasmuch as He was not made priest without an oath [or a
promise]
21 (for they
have become priests without an oath, but He with an oath by Him who said to
Him: “ The LORD has sworn And will not relent,‘ You are
a priest forever According to the
order of Melchizedek’”),
22 by so much more Jesus has become a surety of
a better covenant.
23 Also there were many priests, because they
were prevented by death from continuing.
24 But He, because He continues
forever, has an unchangeable priesthood.
25 Therefore He is also able to
save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession [a present tense verb -
continuous action] for them.
26 For such a High Priest was fitting for us,
who is holy,
harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the
heavens;
27 who does
not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His
own sins and then for the people’s, for this He did once for all when He
offered up Himself.
28 For the law
appoints as high priests men who have weakness, but
the word of the oath, which came after the law, appoints the Son who has been perfected forever.
Christ Jesus
as the Superior Priest with no weaknesses, is an
eternal Priest. As such, He continually
meets with the Father on the behalf of the believer. When Satan would accuse, He is there to point
to His once for all sacrifice. When a
believer is tempted, and just think of the temptations believing inmates face
almost daily, He is there interceding for them to bring them the help they need
at the point of their temptation.
In this
regard, look at and teach inmates the following passage in Hebrews 4:14-16.
14 Seeing then
that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the
Son of God, let us hold fast our
confession.
15 For we do
not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in
all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.
16 Let us
therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we
may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
In closing, I
want you to consider Romans 8:34, it says:
34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died,
and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also [ just like the Holy Spirit in verses 26-27] makes intercession for us.
This is also a
present tense, continual action of Christ, and it is AN ABSOLUTE FACT. When believers feel condemned or when someone
condemns them, Jesus their High Priest and intercessor, WILL ALWAYS be there at the Father’s right hand to represent their best
interest.
Do inmates
need to constantly feel guilty about past sins?
NO, not IF they have Jesus as their own Savior and High Priest.
If they don’t
have Him, then they are guilty sinners and they have no real answer for their
guilt. And so it is with every human
being that is without Christ. Therefore,
explain and proclaim Him!
Rich Hines
Minister to Chaplains, - Chaplain Help
Ministry